Sign Up & Get Your FREE Audio Training

I had an eye-opening conversation last week with a woman named Margie.

Back in June of 2010, Margie lost her son Mitchell to an overdose. She literally went to bed one night and woke up the next morning to her son passed on the couch, TV still on, with the remote dangling from his cold hand.

Needless to say Margie’s world was changed forever that day.

During our conversation the topic of stigmas toward addiction came up. And Margie confessed that when she found out that her son Mitchell was using drugs she kept the horrors to herself.

She was afraid to tell her family and friends, so she lied to them about Mitchell being in jail.

She was so overwhelmed by the shame, brought on by stigmas, that instead of reaching out for the help she needed she tried to figure everything out on her own.

Margie’s story is tragic and unfortunately, not common in the world of addiction. Stigmas keep families silent and afraid at a time when they need to be more vocal than ever.

My conversation with Margie got me thinking about stigmas and the number of times I’ve kept quiet about my life – about my brother’s being in jail, my mother being an alcoholic, my cousin dying of an overdose and my abusive stepfather – out of fear of what other people might think.

And then I had to ask myself, how much could those stigmas and other people’s judgments really hurt me if I’ve already experienced the worst in my life?

The worst being, my abusive parents, an overdose in my family and my wrecked relationship with my brothers.

I asked Margie the same question. The worst already happened to her, she lost her son. So in that context could there really be any stigma out there, or anyone’s negative opinion that could do any more damage?

Compared to the loss of her son, does any of that nonsense even matter?

She and I both agreed that the answer to that one was a big, fat NO!

I’ve got more on Margie’s story coming up in an exciting new project I’ve taken on with mothers who’ve lost a child to an overdose. Keep your eyes open for that one in the next several weeks.

In the meantime, in an effort to step out from under the weight of stigmas and other people’s judgements, I’ve pulled together three of my most revealing essays about my life.

Below I share about why I can’t look in the mirror, the time my mom held me by my ankles out of a window and my suicide attempt.

My hope is that these essays will inspire you to ask yourself – If I’ve already experienced the worst, what harm can some old, outdated stigmas about addiction, domestic violence or mental illness do to me?

If you feel inspired to do so, please share this post with a friend or family member that needs a boost right now. I’ll bet they’ll be happy you did. Comments on the blog are also welcome.

Painkillers are an inspired discovery. They’re a savior in a time of desperate need. But they can also be the gateway to a life of addiction and possible overdose. Painkillers of various forms have been around and will be around for a very long time. Their history is rife with danger, but their future may not be so bleak.

Read on for more details on the past, present, and future of painkillers.

Past

Opioids have been used for pain relief for ages. Ancient civilizations discovered that if you grind down the opium poppy and take it as medication, it relieves pain, thus creating the drug opium. Opium brought about many different painkillers used over the years.

Laudanum was a common form of painkiller in the sixteenth century. It was derived from the opium poppy and prepared in an alcoholic solution to create an effective pain reliever and euphoria inducer. Codeine is another less powerful drug made from the opium poppy. It was first made in the early nineteenth century in France by Jean-Pierre Robiquet. It was mostly used as a cough remedy.

Morphine is the most common form of painkiller administered by doctors today, and it’s also the most active ingredient in opium. It wasn’t extracted from opium in its pure form and used in professional settings until the nineteenth century when it was used for pain medication primarily during the Civil War.

Due to its strength, morphine is extremely addictive, which is shown by the millions who were addicted to opium throughout history. Soldiers in the Civil War became addicted in an attempt to relieve pain and escape from reality. There is also evidence of opium dens in the cheap sides of numerous cities, dating back as early as the fifteenth century.

Opium also started what is known as the First Opium War in the early 1800s. The recreational use of opium had grown so much and was so rampant that it began a war between Britain and China in an attempt to stop the drug traffic.

Following this war and several other cases of opium overdose, the United Statestook action. At the beginning of the 20th century, the recreational use of opium was banned in the United States and law officials have been fighting the illicit use of opiates ever since.

Present

Today, opiates are used in clinical settings for the control of pain. The Food and Drug Act, in conjunction with law enforcement, have put certain rules in place to ensure that the opiates stay in a clinical setting. Still, the war rages on as more and more illicit opiates are spread among the population and more and more people are becoming addicted.

Current statistics from the UN News Center show that more than 70,000 people die from opiate overdose every year. Millions of people are addicted to these painkillers, but according to the WHO, only 10 percent receive treatment.

In an attempt to help reduce addiction to opiates, the WHO has recommended administering naloxone to patients who are likely to become addicted to strong painkillers. Naloxone, in combination with special training for drug administrators, has proven to reduce the power of addiction on those who take painkillers for medicinal purposes.

Though it’s a small step in the war on drug use, it is a major move in the right direction, helping to reduce the number of people who become addicted from use of prescribed painkillers.

Future

Though naloxone is an important step toward limiting addiction to painkillers, the progress doesn’t end there. According to this article, Cara Therapeutics, a drug company based out of Connecticut, has been developing an opioid based drug known as CR845, which is supposed to be much less addictive than traditional opium based drugs. The drug is supposed to work on different nerve endings without entering the brain and causing addiction.

With the help of studies and laboratories around the world, the search for non addictive painkillers continues. Scientists at Icagen and Pfizer, a biotech firm and a major pharmaceutical company respectively, have been studying the ways that sodium ions travel to let the brain know that the body is experiencing pain. They are working on a medication that will close the gateways to the brain, thus stopping pain in its tracks. This form of painkiller will attack the sodium ion channel rather than the nerve endings, which will hopefully reduce the risk of addiction from these painkillers.

Each of these cases is just a start, and they won’t eliminate opioids entirely, but if non-addictive painkillers really are in our future, they could drastically reduce the horrible overdose statistics. While pain is certainly a part of life past, present, and future, hopefully someday soon addiction to painkillers will be something of the past.

No matter how good your support groups and counselors are, nobody can force you to stay sober but you. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t enlist all the help you can get. Since you are likely your own worst enemy, you should seek the help of something that can be with you most of the day to remind you what you’re fighting for when the cravings and temptations become too much. It’s time to start using that phone in your hand as a source of help.

Here are 10 ways you can use technology to help you (and sometimes others) stay sober.

Get Apps

Smartphones are great for games and social media, but more importantly, they have access to really useful apps. There are a lot of apps for smartphones that are great for monitoring sobriety. They can help you get inspired, learn recovery secrets, and practice coping techniques. One app that’s especially great for this isI Am Sober. It announces daily how many days you’ve gone without a drink and how much money you’ve saved in the process.

Network

You can use your smartphone to keep in contact with and find others who are alsostriving for sobriety. Look for online groups and forums specifically devoted to recovering alcoholics and befriend a few of the members. Use your smartphone to call, text, or message others at least once a day to help keep you accountable for your actions. Staying in contact with those in similar situations is one of the best steps you can take towards recovery.

Smartphone Breathalyzers

Though you won’t need this for yourself, if you’re really staying sober, it may be helpful to have a smartphone breathalyzer on hand. You plug this little device into the headphone jack of your phone, and breath into it to get an alcohol content level. This will be useful when it comes to the people you associate with. You can ensure that they are clean and sober and will be a good influence on you.

Make Password Reminders

Your passwords can do double duty by serving as both access to your devices and online accounts as well as reminders of your sober success. For example, you may choose to use a password that states the first day of your sobriety or the name of your recovery group. Every time you type in your password, you’ll be reminded of your goals.

Online Counseling

For those who are unable, or find it difficult to attend physical counseling, they can receive help online. Many recovery centers are opening up an online branch, in which those in recovery can find helpful resources and chat live with certified counselors.

Talk Radio

Use your phone to tune into radio stations that discuss addiction recovery. These kinds of stations aren’t generally played on your car radio’s FM channels, but if you search for them online, you’ll be able to find talk radio solely devoted to helping people like you stay sober. Every time you tune in, you can hear reminders and inspirational stories to help you through the hard times.

Set Reminders

Your phone has the capability of setting scheduled reminders and alerts throughout the day. These reminders are like having a mentor with you at all times to remind you of your goals when you are feeling cravings the strongest. Schedule different messages for different times of the day. For example, set an alarm in the morning that says how many days you’ve stayed sober now, and throughout the day, schedule inspirational messages to remind you of your goals and your commitment to keep them.

Support Chat Groups

The Internet has exploded with millions of support groups to meet the needs of every recovery addict. You can join forums and anonymous chat groups devoted to sharing your story and your struggles with those who are experiencing similar things. Once you’ve found a support group that fits your needs, check in daily to keep yourself accountable and devoted to your goals.

In your most sensitive times, there’s no need to stay rooted to your home because you can’t miss a support group meeting. You can use certain apps, such asOne Health Meeting Finder or12 Step AACompanion to find support groups wherever you travel. If you don’t have the app, Google search the information from your hotel room. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice aspects of a normal life just because of a support meeting.

Social Media

Social media isn’t just a time waster. It can also be a useful tool. You can like recovery pages on Facebook that will send you uplifting messages on your daily newsfeed and you can follow recovery groups on Twitter. Use Instagram to post daily photos of your sobriety to help you keep track of how long you’ve stayed sober. Forget using these social media platforms for feeding boredom. Have them in your toolbelt as a successful way to stay sober.

If you are searching for additional tips, check out thisarticle. With all of these tips in mind, remember that technology can also hinder your success if you use it incorrectly. Certain types of Internet use, such as excessive use of social media, can actually act astriggersfor your addiction. The answer to successful sobriety may just be found in the way you use technology.